Fil-Am Matthews braces for Bellator 181

Filipino-American mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter AJ “The Mercenary” Matthews hopes to get back to his winning ways when he competes in Bellator 181 on July 14 at the WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma.

“I am very excited to be back in the cage and represent the Philippines again,” said Matthews during the weekly Philippine Sportswriters Association forum on Tuesday at the Golden Phoenix Hotel in Pasay City.

The 29-year old Matthews lost in his last three matches the latest against Hisaki Kato during Bellator 162 last October 21, via technical knockout.

He is not expecting to be included in Bellator 181 until he received call from the organizers last week.

“I believe I can be a champion in Bellator. I just need proper timing,” added Matthews, who has a record of eight wins (six by knockout), and six losses.

Matthews will be fighting in the welterweight division (170lbs) against a yet to be determined opponent.

The Fil-Am MMA fighter, whose mother is from Samar, has scored sensational wins in the past including a first-round technical knockout over Kyle Bolt in Bellator 131 in 2014 and a knockout win over Charlie Rader in Bellator 70 in 2012.

Bellator is one of the biggest MMA organizations in the world next to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.